Generations of anglers have made the pilgrimage to Montauk to catch striped bass

MONTAUK, N.Y. (AP) — On most October nights, fishing guide Bill Wetzel can be found navigating the shores of Montauk, New York, in a modified 4x4 pickup truck, rumbling over boulders and thick sand as he scans the surface of the Atlantic for signs of life.

He notes, and meticulously logs, where he spots seams in the water's currents, cuts in sandbars, points and coves, troughs along the shoreline or birds working over bait that was pushed to the surface by one of Montauk’s many predators. Any sign that a striped bass might be feeding beneath the waves, Wetzel will likely see it.

So, as he prepares for a mid-afternoon nap between nocturnal surfcasting customers, he tunes in his VHF radio to get the latest marine forecast. The squawking voice tells him something new.

“Northwest ...” he mutters aloud, pondering what the wind change might mean for his next outing.

He already knows the tides, the moon phase, and the best spots to fish under whatever conditions the ocean has to offer.

What he doesn’t know is if there will be any fish left to catch.

Some years, fishermen will make more than 17 million fishing trips seeking striped bass. But for countless anglers on the East Coast, that future is in danger. Scientists say the species is in decline because of a host of human-caused, environmental and ecological changes, putting the $8 billion industry in jeopardy, and threatening a generations-old tradition of standing on the ocean's edge and trying to catch a potentially humongous fish.

Here’s a look at Montauk’s anglers and what they’ve experienced amid a dramatic decline in striped bass.

Wetzel is obsessed with understanding and finding these fish, which can grow larger than 50 pounds (23 kilograms). Contrary to what one might expect, he doesn’t want to kill them. Instead, he wants to save them so future generations get the opportunity to enjoy the sport he loves.

He has led fishermen to Montauk in search of stripers for more than 25 years, and is one of the best known guides on Long Island. He also actively uses his platforms on social media to discuss conservation, and remembers the collapse of the stock decades ago that led to a fishing shutdown in the mid-1980s.

He doesn't want to relive those days. But he fears it's coming.

“I haven't seen a blitz in four years,” Wetzel said, referring to the chaotic feeding frenzies that were once a hallmark of Montauk's shores. “There's no small fish left. They're gone.”

More and more, he says, the only fish left are big ones. That's because the population isn't replenishing itself.

Jason Markowitz, an IT professional who lives outside New York City, is the former president of the Montauk Surfcasters Association. He is one of the intrepid anglers who still swim out to Montauk's offshore rocks, proven fishing grounds where strong waves can push you around and predators swim at your feet.

He said the chilly swim is worth it “if the fish are there.” Increasingly, he said, they aren't.

“You’ve got a lot of folks that are finding fish but it really is a case of ‘last of the buffalo,’” Markowitz said.

John Skinner is 65 and has been fishing for stripers on Long Island since he was a boy of 10 or younger. In the ensuing years, he has become one of the most respected and sought-after authorities on striped bass fishing.

Looking at the current state of the striped bass industry and the decline in population, two words come to his mind: “It sucks.”

Blunt, but the situation is devastating for Skinner, who runs a popular YouTube channel about striper fishing and authored a book on the subject. These days, he hits up his prime spots on Long Island's North Fork and sometimes leaves empty-handed.

Skinner is inclined to let the scientists come up with reasons for the decline, but he said he can't help but notice a lack of small fish like menhaden for the stripers to feed on. And he sees a lack of other large, predatory fish beyond just stripers.

It's about more than just fish. Sitting in his office, surrounded by decades-old fishing lures, he thinks back to his days on the family boat in the early 1970s, when the itch to fish first set in.

“What do you do with a little kid to keep him out of your hair,” Skinner said. “Give him a rod and some worms.”

With 40 years of fishing under his belt, Mahan says he’s nostalgic for a time when the fish were more abundant.

“What it was like, back in the later ‘80s and ’90s, was spectacular,” Mahan said.

Mahan, who sports a drooping white mustache and fishes from the rocks in a black hoodie and waders, fears the way to save the stripers might be to leave them alone entirely for a while. It would be hard, because striper fishing is in his blood, but sometimes it feels like the only way.

Read more about the science and regulatory issues facing striped bass here.

At “The End,” as it's known, of Long Island, Montauk’s waters are historically renowned for producing some of the best striper fishing in the world.

Part of the draw of Montauk has always been the danger and dynamic environment — there are sand beaches, boulder-strewn points and swift currents that pull bait into coves where fishermen can intercept the big predators chasing their forage.

“The lighthouse kind of draws you in,” said fisherman John Mahan on an October trip. “Beautiful conditions. There should be fish here right now.”

For a long time, Montauk's unofficial motto was “a small drinking village with a big fishing problem.”

“Not anymore,” says Wetzel, lamenting a change in culture.

But he's quick to say he still loves Montauk, and fishing.

“It's in me. If it's not in you, a lot of guys come and go. It's not in you. Plus, I mean, look at this. Look at this — that's why,” he said, motioning to the surf and the ocean beyond it.

Once a blue-collar fishing town, the community has become increasingly hard to distinguish from the nearby ultrawealthy enclaves of the Hamptons. It was a slow transformation that took place over decades and accelerated in the 2000s. But fishermen who have journeyed there for generations say it still maintains an identity all its own.

Whittle reported from Portland, Maine.

See a curated AP Photo Gallery of anglers fishing at Montauk here.

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John Mahan takes a break from casting at Montauk Point on Sunday, Oct. 11, 2026, (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Jason Markowitz casts from an offshore rock while fishing for striped bass, Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026, in Montauk, N.Y. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Fishing guide Bill Wetzel ties on a new leader for a client while fishing on a dark night during the new moon Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, in Montauk, N.Y. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

A striped bass fisherman casts his lure at dawn Saturday, Oct. 10, 2026, in Montauk, N.Y. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

Russia must be allowed to return to ice hockey's international tournaments, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled on Friday, overturning an exclusion in place since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The ruling is a major win for Russia against efforts to bar it from international sports due to the war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin is a noted hockey fan who has previously played exhibition games with former stars.

CAS overturned IIHF decisions which excluded Russia from events in the 2026-27 season, including the men’s and women’s world championships and world juniors. Russia also missed the Olympic tournaments this year.

Russia's return throws into uncertainty how the men's world championship will work next year in Germany, given that Ukraine has also qualified.

In a brief statement, CAS cited a lack of sufficient evidence to support the IIHF’s security concerns.

CAS said its ruling did not address issues such as whether Russia should be required to play without national symbols as a team of neutral athletes, as in some other Olympic sports, or other “organizational consequences.”

The IIHF expressed disappointment with the ruling and said it “maintains that its decisions were necessary to protect the safety and security of all participants and safeguard the integrity of its competitions."

“While the IIHF respects the authority of CAS and will act in accordance with its ruling, the outcome does not remove the concerns that informed its assessments.”

Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyaryov wrote on the Telegram social media app that CAS “recognized the demands of the Russian Hockey Federation on key points as justified.”

The ruling is an immediate challenge for new IIHF President Franz Reindl, whose home country of Germany hosts the men's world championship next year.

“Our task now is to implement this ruling responsibly,” Reindl said in a statement. "Several championships are only weeks away, and changes to participation affect many people; players, teams, organizing committees and host cities. We will work closely with all of them to find practical solutions.”

German hockey federation chairman Frank H. Lutz said on Friday that Germany remains opposed to letting Russia take part and that “allowing Russia in has significant security, political and financial consequences for us as hosts.”

It's not clear how Russia would fit back in, since the draw has already been determined. Adding an extra team would make for uneven groups and an even longer tournament to fit in more games.

Kicking out a qualified team to make way for Russia would risk a backlash, especially if that team is Ukraine. It was last to qualify for the men's worlds, ending a 20-year wait, and is ranked lowest among the 16 teams currently taking part.

The Ukrainian Hockey Federation said it disagreed with the ruling and argued that security concerns had only intensified since 2022. Ukraine didn't indicate how it would approach the world championship.

The IIHF signaled “practical arrangements” would be decided after it has assessed the ruling.

The national hockey federations in Canada, Sweden, Finland and the Czech Republic all said they were disappointed by the ruling, but Swedish Ice Hockey Association chairman Anders Larsson told Swedish news agency TT that “a boycott is not on the table.” Finland indicated individual players could opt out of tournaments which include Russia.

Hockey Canada in a statement said the implications of the ruling are not immediately clear and that the organization had briefed its federal government on the situation.

The first tournament where Russia could return is the men's world junior championship hosted by Canada in Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta, starting on Dec. 26.

Other events covered by the ruling are the women's world championship in Canada in November 2027, the men's under-18 world championship starting in April in Minnesota, and women's under-18 world championship in the Czech Republic in January.

A Russian team playing under its national flag, rather than as neutrals, could have political repercussions in the Czech Republic.

“As the president has stated several times in the past, as long as Russian aggression continues he considers it appropriate to ban the participation of athletes under the Russian and Belarusian flags," a spokesperson for Czech President Petr Pavel said.

The women's worlds beginning next week in Denmark are not affected because it counts as part of the 2025-26 season and was moved to November.

Russia/the Soviet Union’s 27 titles are second only to Canada’s 28 at men's worlds. Russia last won gold in 2014. Russia's best result at women's worlds is bronze.

Since 2022, Russia has organized exhibition games with developmental rosters, mostly against neighbors Belarus and Kazakhstan. The IIHF has also excluded Belarus, citing the same concerns as it did for Russia. There was no mention of Belarus in Friday's CAS ruling.

While the CAS ruling has no effect on the NHL, league officials have said they would follow the lead of the international community when it comes to Russian participation.

The NHL and NHL Players’ Association are running the 2028 World Cup of Hockey without the IIHF and national federations.

Asked about Russia last month, Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said: “I think we know what our thinking is on World Cup of Hockey. We don’t need to make that decision yet, and the more information you have to make any decision, the better the decision will be.”

The hockey win at CAS is part of a broader shift in the Olympic movement toward reintegrating Russia, which had only small squads of “neutral athletes” at the 2024 Paris Olympics and this year's Milan Cortina Winter Olympics.

Swimming and volleyball allowed Russia to compete under its national flag this year. The International Olympic Committee eased its approach too, with a Russian team at the Youth Olympics this week.

Russia's next focus could be soccer, where its national teams and clubs remain excluded from major competitions.

Russian soccer federation general secretary Maxim Mitrofanov said it should be “one rule for all” in comments reported by state news agency Tass.

FIFA and European governing body UEFA have barred Russian teams from World Cup qualifying and the Champions League since 2022, when FIFA told CAS that boycott threats by Russia's upcoming opponents risked making the World Cup “chaotic.”

FIFA allowed a Russia boys' team to play under its national flag in the inaugural Under-15 World Cup and Festival in Azerbaijan, which began last week and ends on Saturday.

The Russian track and field federation said on Friday the hockey decision gave it “confidence” in its own CAS case against World Athletics, the last big Olympic sport with a blanket ban on Russian athletes.

Stephen Whyno in New York and Karel Janicek in Brno, Czech Republic, contributed to this report.

See AP’s full sports coverage here

FILE - Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev attends the plenary session of the 'Russia is The Country of Sports' forum in Samara, Russia, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025. (Sergei Karpukhin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Russia players celebrate during the Ice Hockey World Championship group A match between the Russia and Sweden in Riga, Latvia, May 31, 2021. (AP Photo/Roman Koksarov, File)